Identity
by SuperWhoSpazz
Summary: "I'm thinking of adopting a last name. Not now, but another day, when I'm an actual agent, a great agent... What do you think of 'Agent Skye Avery?" Skye-centric. Several moments in Skye's life where she belongs somewhere. Post 'Seeds'
1. Her Story Started Here

"What will you do now?"

Skye turned slightly, glancing over her shoulder for a moment before answering, "I'll keep going." Ward nodded slightly, his lips quirking just slightly.

"There's never gonna be a day where I don't wonder who my parents are, but I belong somewhere now. I've always belonged. I just didn't know it until now..."

For a little while, it didn't matter to Skye that she didn't know her origins. She was just glad to have somewhere to go.

Ward took a step closer to her, as if in prompt for her to continue. She grazed a finger across the name on the wall, taking it in once more that this woman, this remarkable woman, had died protecting her.

She threw a glance over her shoulder again to see Ward standing, waiting for her to say something more. A stray tear fell down her cheek and to the floor. She took a breath. "I'm thinking of adopting a last name. Not now, but another day, when I'm an actual agent, a great agent... What do you think of 'Agent Skye Avery'?"

Ward gave a small, but sincere smile. "I think it sounds perfect."


	2. Something to Celebrate

"What's all this?" Skye's eyes were flicking between the stack of gifts and her team members, unsure how she should be reacting.

Coulson smiled and stood from his seat and picked up one of the presents off the pile and placed it gently into Skye's hands. "They're for you. This is a birthday party—a birthday party for you." Skye blinked again.

Simmons spoke up, "We figured that since you don't know your birthday—"

"Well, we figured we could celebrate the day—"

"—the day you joined the team. It's been a year you know!" Simmons finished after Fitz's intervene.

Skye blinked surprised. "So… you two put this together?"

FitzSimmons shook their heads in unison before Simmons spoke, "No. I mean, _yes, _we helped set everything together but it was all of us. Technically, it was—"

"It was my idea." May interrupted Simmons, shifting slightly in her seat. "Figured today would be a good day to celebrate." Her eyes were filled with mirth despite her barely changing expression "I think you'll like my gift."

Skye's jaw practically dropped but she quickly caught herself. "I—Wow. Thank you," Skye glanced at Ward, who was leaning against the wall, smiling gently. "What about you, Ward? Did you have anything to do with this?" Her attention shifted from May to the Ops. agent.

He met her eyes and his smile deepened slightly. "I may have had a hand in setting up. My present's the one wrapped in newspapers, by the way."

The smile that broke out on Skye's face was infectious as the entire team found themselves smiling along with her. Even May wore a small smile.

"I don't know how to thank you guys. This is really great…"

"Don't thank us, Skye. We're not just celebrating your birthday. We're celebrating the day we found a friend." Coulson turned to Skye, his eyes shining with affection.

Dropping the small gift in her hands onto the counter, Skye immediately wrapped her arms around Coulson, hugging him gratefully. Slowly, he wrapped his arms around her as well. "Thanks, AC. This means a lot."

They unraveled their arms from around each other and took a step back. "No problem, Skye. Now open your presents. I think there might be some Captain America memorabilia in there somewhere." Coulson winked, going back to his seat next to May.

"Oh you'll love what I made you, Skye! Some of my best work, I'd say!" Fitz grinned at Skye, gesturing to a present wrapped in monkey covered paper.

She grinned at Fitz before grabbing the small gift Coulson had handed her and tearing into the wrapping paper, tossing it everywhere.

The neatly wrapped box turned out to contain a bracelet with charms from all the places they'd had missions in. There was a charm from everywhere they'd gone and one shaped like a laptop and another like a S.H.I.E.L.D. insignia.

As Skye tore into her presents one after another, she couldn't help thinking that _this _is what it felt to be in a family. FitzSimmons were constantly badgering her to open their gifts to her while Ward rolled his eyes good naturedly in the corner. May and Coulson stood back and watched, looking proud when Skye ended up opening their presents first and loving them to bits.

_Yeah, this is family. _


	3. Just As Good

"Are you sure you wanna do this, Skye? Are you sure you wanna see him?" Coulson turned to Skye, his brows furrowed and his eyes filled with concern.

Skye nodded, biting her lip to stop herself from saying 'no' and walking away. She needed to do this. Skye reached out a hand and took hold of the steel doorknob. She took a deep breath before turning the knob and walking in.

"Skye?" Miles's confusion was clear on his face as he saw Skye walk in, an emotionless expression painted across her face. Skye strode in with more confidence than she felt, closing the door softly.

"It's been a while." Skye's eyes flicked to his, flickering with rage before dimming once more. "We, the team and I, I mean, we got an alert about a few shady deposits made a week ago. And what do you know? We found you. You're getting sloppy."

"Sk—"

"No. We settled this last time. I'm not going to even try and get you out of this. It was clever, you know. Planting the bracelet on a stand-up guy after somehow managing to disengage it. Not clever enough though." She shot him a glare as she tossed the manila folder onto the metal table where Miles was handcuffed.

"Now here's how this is going down. I'm going to talk and I want you to listen carefully. The only way for you to get out of this box is to put on another bracelet, this one designed by my friends, FitzSimmons. And trust me when I say, it won't come off without the express intention of S.H.I.E.L.D. Otherwise, you'll be here for a while."

Miles' jaw hung open as he stared at Skye, taking in all the differences. "What did they do to you?"

She swung her body around to glare at him. "This isn't about me. This is about you, and the fact that you were never the person I thought I knew. But you know what? You wanna hear how I've been? I'll tell you."

Something shifted in her gaze and it became lighter and her eyes softened. "I found out who I am. And I found my family,"

Her expression was shut down within a second as she returned back to her interrogation face. "Someone will be in later with your bracelet. And for your sake, I'd really consider putting it on."

Miles stood abruptly, jerked slightly by the handcuffs attached to the table. "Wait! You found your parents?"

Skye walked out the door without turning around or responding. When she shut the door behind her, she let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Coulson smiled sadly at her before placing a hand comfortingly on her shoulder. After a moment, he pulled away and turned down the hallway.

Skye smiled at his retreating form.

_No Miles, I didn't find my parents. But I found something just as good. _


	4. Level One

Skye strutted about the Bus, pumping her fist every few minutes in victory. Everyone else would be back soon but for the moment, Skye celebrated her accomplishment on her own. Loud music pumped through the halls and echoed along the walls.

Skye didn't notice when someone entered the plane until May was already seated at the counter, her normal expression in place and a drink already in hand.

"So I take it that it went well."

Skye startled from her dancing, spinning to face May. "Holy crap, May, a little warning next time. Where are the others?" She drew in on herself wrapping her arms around her middle, shifting from foot to foot.

"I'll take that into consideration. The others are unloading the supplies. How did it go?"

"I did it. I really did it." Skye's smile grew back to her eyes as she spoke, slowly relaxing her arms back to her sides. "I passed my evaluation. I'm an official agent now."

May nodded, already having figured out why she was so ecstatic. "Good job, Skye. You've earned it. Nobody will be able to refer to you as just a consultant anymore."

Skye smiled down at the ground bashfully. "It's great. I now have level one clearance."

May let a small smile grace her lips. "Soon enough you'll be moving up the ranks. S.H.I.E.L.D. will want you for plenty of missions. Be proud, Skye."

"Well, even when I do move up, I'll stay right here. This is my team. All of you, well you're…" _family _Skye thought.

"I know."

Skye raised her head to look May in the eyes, seeing in her eyes that she really _did _know what Skye meant. Her smile shrunk but remained just as sincere.

"You know... they told me that now that I'm level one, I'll need to start on my other skills as an agent. I figured maybe you could teach me to fly? I mean if not it's totally ok and I know you're busy an—"

"Sure."

"Wait, really?"

"Yes. We'll start tomorrow after your workout with Agent Ward. Be ready." With that last word, May stood, having finished her drink, and walked away, her lips just quirked slightly.

A/N: If anyone wants to, I'd be willing to take drabble requests for this series. I'd consider doing some drabbles with some ships in them but I can't promise I'd do every single one since I wanna keep the story mostly ship free for now and plus I don't ship everything that might be requested.


	5. Imitation

A/N: A guest requested I write a drabble where May finds out about Skye's use of her name in getting information about Coulson's whereabouts. Here it is. By the way, I won't be writing any more drabbles until the weekend because of school and play rehearsals. So you can expect several drabbles each weekend but after today, no drabbles during the week. This tales place shortly after Seeds.

"Skye's training is going well, huh?" Coulson glanced at May, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips.

May nodded, her eyes remaining focused on the screen that showed Skye and Ward training on the mats. Skye was swerving out of the way of Ward's quick jabs, even managing to sweep a foot under Wards', effectively making him stumble before he caught himself and sent another flurry of jabs her way. A moment later, he had her arms in a lock behind her back and he was smirking slightly down at her.

"Ward is training her well."

Coulson grinned wider, nodding slightly. "She's certainly come a long way from the hacker we picked up. You know, I think she gets some of her fighting style from you. Has she told you how she managed to get Intel on my whereabouts?"

May shook her head slightly, turning to face Coulson, her eyebrow raised in question. "How?"

"She pretended to be you and got Lloyd Rathman to give her access to his transaction records."

"Hm. That explains the outfit she was wearing."

Coulson glanced back at the screen for a moment where Skye was throwing a few punches and kicks at the punching bag. "I think even though you both have some issues seeing eye to eye, she looks up to you."

May let her lips shift into something resembling a smile. "She's a good kid. She'll go far one day. Might have rookies imitating _her _eventually." Throwing a glance back at the screen, May watched Skye manage to kick the punching bag hard enough that Ward was thrown slightly.

Both agents continued to watch Skye and Ward train, a twinge of pride running through both of them.


	6. Flying Lessons

A/N: It seemed by the reviews that several people wanted to see a flying lesson. This happens a few months after Skye becomes an official level one agent. The next prompt request will be posted either later tonight or tomorrow at some point. Keep the requests coming.

"So I just—"

"No. Tighten your grip. You don't want the plane to lose too much altitude so you've got to keep your hands steady." May demonstrated the proper grip before gesturing to Skye to try again.

Skye nodded quickly before readjusting her grip. "Is this good?"

May gave a small nod before turning back to her side of the cockpit. "Now I want you to demonstrate how to start the engines."

"Right. Engines." Skye leaned forward, murmuring to herself as she went through the steps systematically. Her hands flicked across the buttons on the dashboard in a similar way to how they flicked across the keyboard of her laptop. When she pressed the last button, it flickered before a roaring sound was emitted from the vents.

"Good." May's eyes followed each movement of her hands, waiting for any possible mess up but coming up short when the sound came through. "You've been practicing."

"Yeah… Coulson found a simulation program from one of the academy courses. I've been using it on my laptop."

"You're doing very well, Skye. In a few weeks, you'll be ready to go on a practice flight. You'll be done with the simulator."

Skye beamed in pride. "That's awesome! I'm so ready to actually see some clouds."

May tilted her head slightly before giving Skye a small pat on the back. "Don't get ahead of yourself. There'll be plenty of time for actual flying once you've got your license to fly solo. We've still got a few weeks before I can take you on a practice flight. Keep up the practice."

Skye deflated, letting her shoulders sag and her lips pucker into a pout. She glanced at May's expression before letting a small smile creep back onto her face. "Yeah… All the same, I'm excited. I'll be useful for something besides hacking."

"You're useful as you are, Skye. Don't forget that." May spoke sincerely, her words stern as she turned to look once more at the aspiring agent.

Skye's eyes widened at May's words, however brief they were. She was taken aback by the forcefulness May used. She froze for a moment before speaking, "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For believing in me."


	7. Reputation

A/N: Requested by maricejayo.

"I'll see you all in a week! Don't go on any super cool missions without me! I mean it!" Skye playfully narrowed her eyes at the team as they all said their goodbyes to Skye for the week.

"The bus will feel so empty without you, Skye. We'll miss you!" Simmons shouted to Skye as the van started to move away from the curb. Skye smiled, waving cheerfully at her friends before turning to take in her surroundings. She stood in front of a tall glass paned building where various people walked in and out. Taking a deep breath, she strode up to the doors and swiped her I.D. card and walked in.

Walking in, Skye was surrounded by other agents, all wearing some form of uniform for training. Recalling her map, Skye looked for which way she needed to go.

Moments later, Skye was in the elevator, on her way to the eleventh floor when it opened and a young agent in training walked in. "Which floor?"

"Huh? Oh, uh, eleven. I'm starting my group training today." The girl seemed somewhat awkward in the way she shifted from foot to foot, in excitement or nervousness, Skye couldn't tell.

"Really? Me too!" Skye smiled brightly at the girl who seemed to gain some confidence at her words.

The girl breathed out, her shoulders relaxing. "Cool. I'm Talia Evans, or I guess, Agent Evans." She held out a hand towards Skye.

Leaning towards her, Skye gripped her hand and shook it firmly. "Skye."

Talia blinked several times in surprise before letting go of Skye's hand and shifting away slightly. For the rest of the elevator ride, Talia shot glances at Skye when Skye's attention moved to other occupants of the elevator who got on and off as they continued upward.

…

Throughout Skye's first day, every time she introduced herself to the other training agents, they would seize up or find an excuse to stop chatting with her and she had no clue why. Finally, after a long day of practicing, she set out to figure the situation out.

Skye slowly made her way near to Talia, creeping along the wall until she was right behind Talia before speaking. "What do you know?"

Talia jumped from her seat on the bench before twisting around to stare at Skye. "I'm sorry?" Skye rolled her eyes, clearly unconvinced of Talia's confusion.

"About _me. _Everyone's been avoiding me all day after I say my name. I wanna know why."

Talia stared in disbelief at Skye for a moment before bursting out in laughter. "Like you don't know! You shouldn't be in a level one training group!"

Skye leaned back, feeling a tendril of insult creeping up her back. _"Excuse me?" _She furrowed her eyebrows and glared at Talia, her lips curling downward.

Talia's eyebrows shot up as she realized how Skye must have taken her words. "No, no, no! I didn't mean you don't _deserve _to be here! I only meant that you should be training with the other levels!"

It was Skye's turn to blink in confusion as all anger drained out of her. "What?" she asked dumbly.

Talia let out a slight laugh, smiling up at Skye, who stood in front of her. "You've trained with Agent Ward, and Agent May. That's about the best training any rookie could ask for. You should be applying to take your level two evaluation by now."

"Wow."

…

A week later, Coulson drove up to the front of the tall building in Lola, waving when he saw Skye walking out the door, her suitcase rolling behind her.

Skye waved back, smiling brightly.

After putting her suitcase in the trunk, Skye plopped into the passenger seat, and wrapped her arms around Coulson, hugging him quickly. Coulson chuckled as she hugged him, gently wrapping his own arms around her and giving her a quick pat on the back. "So how did it go? Did you make some new friends?"

Skye laughed, pulling away. "Oh yeah. I made plenty of friends in my training for level two."

Coulson's eyes widened. "Level two?"

"Yep. Turns out being trained by three top agents means I'm a bit ahead of the other rookies."

Coulson chuckled, glancing towards the small group of young agents that was watching them. "Should I be expecting mail from any level one admirers for you, then?"

Skye's eyes flicked towards the group, a toothy smile stretching across her lips. "Maybe a few."


	8. Aftermath: Part 1

A/N: This will be a two part thing. This takes place maybe 2/3 of a year after the last drabble. Enjoy! Requested by Salkri Kachemench.

Skye's breath filled the room, her eyes glazed with tears and her lip bleeding. Her hair was in knots and her wrists were sore from being cuffed so long. Her chest heaved up and down with her labored breaths and pain struck her very being as she lied there, thinking.

It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was a routine mission. It wasn't supposed to happen the way it did. She wasn't supposed to have been captured. But here she was, locked in a dark and damp room with nothing but her pain to keep her warm. They'd tried to interrogate her. They'd tried to juice her for all the secrets she had. She didn't give them anything though. But that came with a price.

They'd taken all of her technology. But hopefully, the scent tracker she wore would lead her rescue right to her.

…

It was three days, four hours, and eighteen minutes after her capture when the heavy door opened with a scratching sound on the cement floor. She was expecting another round of punches, knives, slaps, and threats but she was met with the sight of Ward, staring down at her with so much concern that her eyes spilled over with hot, salty, tears. She wanted to brush it off and say she was fine but only a small sobbing noise fell from her lips.

…

Approximately two hours and ten minutes later, she was back on the Bus, being treated for all her injuries, cuts, and bruises. Everyone waited with concern and curiosity for her to tell them what happened but her lips remained closed, and her expression stayed neutral. If not for the redness of her eyes, she hardly looked like she'd been crying at all.

She went on for days without making a sound, until in her haste to finish some experiment with Fitz, Simmons dropped a glass beaker. It shattered to the floor in a cascade of shards and liquid. Skye just so happened to be nearby when it fell.

The sound of the glass shattering set something off in Skye and all of a sudden, she was curled up in a ball on the floor, sobbing, her lips pressed so tightly together, her split lip began to bleed. Someone was at her side immediately, rubbing her back and whispering soft words to her. It was only after she finally reopened her eyes that she realized it was Ward who was by her side, having seen her collapse when coming down the stairs.

"It's gonna be alright, Skye. It's gonna be fine. You're safe…" He rubbed his hands up and down her shoulders and back, trying to soothe her panicking.

Soon enough, everyone was huddled around Skye, all so badly wanting to make the pain go away, to make it so her capture had never happened. Simmons was close to tears, looking at her friend in so much terror. Fitz held Simmons' hand while they both leaned down close to Skye and each held one of her hands in one of their own.

…

Several hours later, Skye was asleep, having tired herself out from crying so much. Her head rested against Ward's chest and her hands were loosely grasped in Fitzsimmons' hands.

Coulson and May were seated on the floor a few feet from the others, watching. Their gazes were trained on Skye's form, waiting for the slightest movement to send her back into a fit. Coulson's eyebrows were knit and his lips were pulled downward in a deep frown, concern lacing each and every one of his features.

May's expression remained mostly neutral, but her fists were balled at her sides, anger lining her veins at the ideas of what the captors could have done.

…

In the middle of the night, when Skye woke up, she nearly started panicking again before realizing she was surrounded by her team. Her team members were all asleep in random positions but all protectively surrounding her. Skye shifted slightly to see Coulson and May leaned against a wall, their eyes closed but their postures stiff. Skye was sure they were just barely asleep.

As she shifted back into Ward's chest, she was grateful to her team. She'd said nothing at all about what she'd been through, even when she broke, but they came to her, and encircled her with comfort, and love to evaporate the memories she was reliving.

She resolved to tell them in the morning. With that, she closed her eyes once more and pulled the blanket someone had placed on her slightly upward, covering her and Ward more completely.

She didn't notice when a few moments later, Ward's eyes opened and he smiled softly down at her once again sleeping form.


	9. Aftermath: Part 2

A/N: Part two of Aftermath. By the way, I know that the cover I have for this drabble series isn't very interesting and I was wondering if anyone would like to design one for me. If not, it's fine. But if someone does wanna design a cover for the story, I'd happily dedicate a few drabbles to them and maybe write an actual one-shot for them. Let me know in the reviews or by sending me a message! Enjoy part 2!

She shifted her eyes from person to person, biting her lip in anxiety. She breathed in, parting her lips, and blowing out a puff of air. "Th—they said something. Something about weapons. They, they wanted weapons." Her voice shook as she spoke and she wrapped her arms around her middle. This wasn't something that would just roll off her back. "There was—there was this man. A—and this woman." Her eyes began to burn with tears. Somehow, she found the strength to continue. "They tortured me."

She glanced around the room once more only to find that all the eyes she met were filled with not just sadness, but knowing. She rubbed one hand up her arm nervously before speaking again. "I felt so helpless. I felt—I just, I felt like any minutes my body was going to give out. I went two days without food. And they _hurt_ me."

They all listened in silence as she told them everything that happened when she was held captive. All the things they physically did to hurt her and the emotional pain they put her through. When she was finished, she was shaking and crying again. Simmons immediately walked up to her and wrapped her in her arms, shushing her gently.

"You're safe now, Skye. We won't let them hurt you again. You're safe here, on the Bus. We're here, Skye. We're here." Simmons kept talking, reminding Skye of how far they'd go to protect her.

After several moments, Skye, with a shaky and hiccupping voice spoke once more. "Thank you."

Fitz walked closer and placed a protective hand on Skye's shoulder. "We're your friends, Skye. We'll always look out for you."

The others nodded in agreement.

…

For the next several weeks, Skye sat out on missions and stayed with Fitzsimmons. She worked more with her hacking skills than her offensive skills during missions to avoid being to near the action. She had less workout sessions with Ward and less flying lessons with May.

She did, however, spend more time with Coulson, in his office. Skye found it easiest to talk with Coulson about what had happened as he'd been much of a confidant to her for as long as she'd known him.

Along with her regular meetings with Coulson, Skye spent plenty of girl time with Simmons, watching corny chick flicks and making fun of the cliché plots. She didn't laugh as much as she used to, and her eyes weren't as light as they once were, but she was a little less broken by the day.

The first field mission she went on was two months later, after spending three weeks before hand going through rigorous training to make sure nothing like her last mission happened again.

And it didn't. Her mission was a complete success.

And slowly, Skye was nearly as she once was. Some nights though, she had nightmares. But there was always someone willing to help her through them and even the nightmares became a distant memory.

Looking in the mirror one day, Skye realized how mature she looked. She looked strong to herself, and brave. She looked like a true S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. And inwardly, she thanked her team for helping her to become this, but even more so for helping her still be alive.


	10. Be Safe

A/N: The next 5 drabbles take place between the time when Skye was captured and tortured to her looking in the mirror from the end of the last drabble. Feel free to send more requests.

"Just calm down, Skye. There's nobody trying to hurt you." Coulson's face was scrunched up with concern as he held Skye, rocking her back and forth. "It's ok. Relax."

Skye's fist was balled into his shirt, her eyes tightly shut. A shrill sound came from her pressed lips. "No! No!"

Coulson shook her slightly in an attempt to wake her up from her nightmare. "You're not in that cellar anymore. You're alive, and safe. Skye, you are so _safe_!" His voice broke on the last word he found himself recalling a separate time where Skye was even closer to death.

Skye seemed to realize she was in no apparent threat and relaxed in Coulson's arms, burrowing her head into his side. Her hands loosened on the wrinkled cotton of his button down.

As Coulson sat there, Skye's erratic breathing evened out as her nightmares faded to something more pleasant. He watched over her, a sad frown etched across his usually good natured features. He should have known it would only be a matter of time before someone hurt Skye again. He wasn't so lucky as to be able to give her the safety she deserved.

Skye had been on the brink of death before. And now she wasn't so much on the brink of death as on the brink of losing herself in her fear.

Even when she talked, her eyes were more dull, her actions less bold, her stride less confident.

Coulson could remember comforting Skye after nightmares before, especially after being shot in the stomach. He'd almost lost her then. He and the rest of the team had been so afraid of losing her again when she was captured. They had scrambled for every possible way to save her. And when they found her in that dark cellar, crying noiselessly, they knew they had failed.

Now the objective was to help her in any way they could. They'd let her be compromised too many times and their luck would eventually run out.

As Coulson pulled the blanket over her body, he swore to himself that she'd be safe.


	11. Movie Night

"Did you see how corny that was?! The girl wrote the guy a damn poem to win him back!" Skye laughed at the screen, pointing to the protagonist who was tearfully reciting a poem about love and loss.

Simmons giggled, covering her mouth with her hand to stile the noise. A moment later, Skye was still laughing and Simmons had quieted down. "Skye! Be quiet! We'll wake up every one!"

Skye threw her head back in a final outburst of laughter before taking a few gulps of air to help her regain her control. "I know, I know. I'm sorry. I probably shouldn't have woken you up either. It _is _four a.m. already. I know you prefer to get a full night of sleep." Skye ducked her head, grimacing slightly in guilt.

As she looked down in guilt, Simmons placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "It's no trouble, Skye. I know you wouldn't be able to get back to sleep after… Well, we're friends. I'll be fine with a little less sleep than usual. Now, what should we watch next?"

From her position, Skye looked up at Simmons with a grateful smile. Skye's expression shifted to one of contemplation as she thought about movies. Suddenly, she smiled brightly. "We're gonna watch Mulan. I haven't watched it in a while and it's awesome."

Jemma smiled and nodded slightly in agreement before handing the laptop over to Skye, who promptly went through her movie library and pressed on Mulan.

As the opening started to play, Skye spoke up. "You know what I love about Mulan? She's badass and even though she's not accepted for her differences in the beginning, she earns the respect of the _entire _country."

Flicking her eyes to Skye, Jemma smiled before responding. "Reminds me a little bit of you. You were in the Rising Tide but now you're here, saving the world, one mission at a time."

"Well… I don't think I'm quite as respected as Mulan yet. I've got a long way to go before I'm a top agent or anything."

Simmons rolled her eyes before bumping her shoulder with Skye's affectionately. "Nonsense. You're a great agent now. And you know all of us on the Bus would never let anyone show you any less respect than you deserve. You're absolutely wonderful, Skye."

"Thanks, Simmons." As the first line played on the laptop screen, Skye wrapped one arm around Simmons in a side hug before releasing her and continuing to watch the movie.


	12. Game On

"Do I really have to say it? You already know. Can't you let me keep this remaining piece of dignity?" Ward frowned at Skye from across the table, his expression as closely resembling a pout as Agent Grant Ward is capable of.

Skye crooked an eyebrow, shaking her head slightly with a smug grin gracing her features. "Nuh uh. I wanna hear it. _Again." _

Ward tossed an unamused glare in Skye's direction before sighing and saying with submission, "You sunk my battleship."

"In your face! Who's the rookie now?!" Skye leapt from her seat, pointing at Ward in victory.

Ward rolled his eyes at Skye's boisterous behavior before standing and placing a hand on Skye's wrist to lower it to her side. "You're still the rookie here, Skye. You're just better at battleship than I am."

"And loving every minute of it!" Skye lips remained turned upwards in slight smile but it lost its smugness and became more reserved. "My board game skills only prove how awesome I am at tactics. Just like they prove how your strong suit is 'shoot first, plan later'." She away, a memory popping up before returning her attention to Ward. "You'd probably do better in an arcade game."

The corner of Grant's lips turned up, resembling a smile. "You'll do fine with the 'shoot first, plan later' tactic when you've been on more missions. And just so you know, I could beat you at any other board game. I have plenty of tactical knowledge. I _am _the one that went to The Academy for my line of work."

Skye snorted, placing her hand against the table to support her arm as she leaned forward. "We'll see, Mr. Macho. I bet you a week off from training that I can beat you in any board game we have here. Then we'll see who the tactical one is."

He nodded, giving her an even expression. "Alright. And when you lose, you get kitchen duty for the next week."

Skye's smile stretched to show her teeth as she announced, "Game. On."


End file.
